Women's football legend and Canada goalkeeper Karina LeBlanc will appear on Generation Amazing (GA) Instagram Live this Wednesday at 4 PM Doha time (GMT+3) to discuss gender equality, women in sport initiatives and give advice to the next generation of youth.

The current Head of Women’s Football at CONCACAF was the first female professional player to compete at a record five FIFA Women’s World Cup™ tournaments for her country.

LeBlanc won the bronze medal at the London 2012 Olympics with the Canadian national team and went on to become one of the longest-serving team members with over 18 years playing for her country.

At club level, the legendary goalkeeper has enjoyed a long career in the professional league with US teams including the Chicago Stars and the Portland Thorns among others.

Today, LeBlanc works closely with GA partner CONCACAF to develop the women’s game in the confederation’s 41 member countries. LeBlanc is also a long-serving Ambassador of UNICEF Canada, travelling to some of the world’s most underprivileged communities for development work.

In anticipation of the session, Nasser Al Khori, GA’s Programmes Director, said, “Gender equality remains one of our core programme causes as we work towards ensuring that girls continue to be inspired and empowered through the Generation Amazing football for development programme.”

Al Khori added, “We are proud to feature Karina LeBlanc, a women’s football legend who is doing incredible work with our partner CONCACAF to advance women’s football. We believe this session will further inspire young girls and boys to follow their dreams and keep working hard, both on and off the field.”

In the previous week of GA Live sessions, Argentina and AS Roma defender Nicolás Burdisso shared insights from his outstanding career and underlined the values which have helped him succeed on the world’s biggest stage.

The former Boca Juniors player shared his advice on how to stay active and motivated during the COVID-19 pandemic – as well as answering questions which came in from the audience during the session.

Burdisso said, “Football is a phenomenal sport to use – everyone knows it is a sport that requires a team. It is a great tool to teach kids certain tools to use in their day-to-day.”

Speaking to youth aspiring to make a career in football and sport, the former defender added, “There’s no magic to it, you just have to work hard and continue dreaming – follow your dream. Of course, there is a bit of talent involved but it’s all about consistency and waiting for your opportunity to come to perform to the best of your abilities.”

GA has reached 500,000 beneficiaries in Asia and the Middle East to date, and aims to positively impact 1 million youth by 2022.

Follow @GA4Good on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter to find out all you need to know about the GA programme.